Fraternizing With the Enemy
by Transformer-Slash
Summary: Ultra Magnus and Cyclonus are two of a kind on opposite sides. They can never be more than enemies. Cyclonus/Ultra Magnus. Plug'n'Play. Don't say I didn't warn you.


I watched an episode of G1 called "Killing Jar" and it made me absolutely ravenous for this pairing, but there isn't much of it out there... So in the spirit of picking unusual pairings I wrote this. Watch out for the Plug'n'Play as it is not good for children.

Flame me, I'm getting tired of carrying around a massive ego.

* * *

Ultra Magnus woke from stasis suddenly. He had been having a dream of sorts, but now it was just a vague memory quickly fading into the morning. It had been a rough couple of nights. He had dreamt during every single one of them. Upon waking it was too hazy to remember it all. He supposed he had undergone a lot of psychological stress after being captured by a Quintesson and experimented on like an animal. Not to mention his near scrape with death. It was thinking of this ordeal that reminded him of what he had perhaps been dreaming of.

The sharp visage of Cyclonus came into his mind. They had sworn to meet again as enemies, a promise Ultra Magnus had every intention of keeping. It was his duty as a soldier to fight. None the less he felt a strange twist in his spark every time he thought of Cyclonus. The two of them were not so different. They were both soldiers first and foremost, completely dedicated to their respective causes and leaders. It was this like mentality that made it so hard to feel the hate he felt for other Decepticons. Cyclonus and him had fought blow for blow in perfect symmetry, and worked together with like-minded efficiency. Cyclonus had even finished his sentences, a fact that was perhaps more startling then anything.

Ultra Magnus was an Autobot. Cyclonus, a Decepticon. Yet for a few moments on that starship they were fighting toward the same goal. Fighting for survival, because it was the only thing they knew. They had been to another universe and back, but in this one, they were so far apart. Ultra Magnus shook his helm from side to side to clear it from these thoughts. He could not afford sentiment toward the enemy. He tried to dispell the budding respect with thoughts of what terrible war crimes the Decepticons committed. However these thought were all attached to the image of Megatron and Galvatron. They were the ring leaders. Perhaps, deep down, the Autobots and Decepticons both had a capacity for something greater. He knew he would never find out.

* * *

Cyclonus relished these moments of battle. When a very real chaos over took everything, nothing else mattered but victory. He had torn through several lesser Autobots with ease, leaving them leaking energon onto the surface of the desolate planetoid. When the Decepticons took Pluto they would have a stronghold within Earth's solar system. It would not be long until the other planets fell in line. All they needed was this one victory. It looked as though they would have it too. Until from the sky an Autobot ship approached, it easily dodged fire and landed, unleashing its cargo of reinforcements. Then the ship itself transformed. Skylinx had arrived, as well as the most elite Autobot fighters.

Cyclonus merely smirked, it was time for a real challenge now. He tossed aside the petty Autobot whom he had held by the throat. He knew who he was searching for among the chaos of engagement; Ultra Magnus. He craved to lock in battle once more with that worthy opponent. It was not long before he saw his face. Ultra Magnus was standing strong against five lesser Decepticons. Cyclonus expected no less.

"Be gone, slogs, that Autobot is mine!" He barked the order and the five Decepticons seemed happy to oblige. They scattered to find opponents more their strength. The sniveling cowards. Ultra Magnus did not look shocked to see Cyclonus. He'd been expecting it, in fact. Ultra Magnus was a worthy opponent left unvanquished, something he knew a Decepticon of high rank could not abide.

"We meet again." Ultra Magnus said, flexing his servos before clenching them into fists.

"Indeed, as promised." Cyclonus took the same fighting stance before springing forward with a rumbling battle cry. Ultra Magnus dodged this first charge with casual ease. He retaliated with a swing of his own fists aimed at Cyclonus's jaw. Cyclonus dodged, but that was to be expected, which is why there was no force nor weight behind the punch and Magnus recovered easily from his miss to guard himself again. Cyclonus could not suppress his grin as he did a leg sweep, knocking Ultra Magnus back. His elation only grew when Magnus landed with his hands out and jumped quickly back to his feet.

It was a familiar dance between two fighters. They were each other's equal in skill and rank. It was a perfect match. The battle around them did not matter, nor did the landscape. They punched and dodged, hit and missed. It was a flurry of activity. But as Ultra Magnus found he was being slowly backed toward a ravine, it was too late. Their brawling had taken them far from the center of the action and now Ultra Magnus had allowed himself to be cornered. His feet stood inches from the ledge that crumbled off into a dark abyss.

"It's a shame-" Ultra Magnus began.

"That this battle will be over so soon." Cyclonus finished for him. He made his final strike putting all his weight into a blow that would surely send his opponent tumbling into oblivion. Ultra Magnus dodged. Cyclonus tipped forward himself, and barely grasped the ledge, holding on by one hand. Ultra Magnus got up slowly from his crouch, somewhat stunned. He hadn't been sure the maneuver would work. However now he stood on the edge, his enemy hanging on by a thread. He turned and looked down at Cyclonus. He could see by his face that he hadn't enough strength to pull himself up by one hand. Ultra Magnus watched Cyclonus's feet scramble against the cliff-face for a foot hold he could not find.

"Cyclonus?" Ultra Magnus said stupidly. He felt as if the world were moving in slow motion. It was by raw instinct that he knelt and extended his had to his fallen opponent. Cyclonus looked at it for a moment, indignation crossed over his face. Followed by an unreadable expression. He grasped Ultra Magnus's hand, but did not pull himself up. Rather, he pulled Ultra Magnus down, and they both tumbled into the abyss.

* * *

The next thing that Ultra Magnus knew was pain. In every joint and seam of himself. It shot up and down his chassis as warning lights flashed in his optics. He took a moment to gather himself from it. After a few deep intakes of air he found the initial pain dull and subside almost entirely. It was merely a warning to tell him he had fallen a great distance. He took stock of himself. Miraculously, nothing was broken. He looked up to see that the ravine was made dark by shadow, not by distance. He had fallen only fifty meters or so. That sort of fall was a bit of a shock to the system, and the way he landed had been enough to knock him offline, but other then that there was very little damage done.

He heard a stirring next to him. The scrape of metal on rock and a slightly disgruntled groan told him Cyclonus was down here with him. Ultra Magnus could not suppress the smile that crossed his face. Cyclonus was going to be very angry the fall had not killed either of them. It had been a grandiose gesture, pulling them both down, but it came to nothing. Ultra Magnus was not even mad. He should have expected it. He should have finished Cyclonus then and there. Even though if he had 'finished' him, he would have simply woken up very ticked off at the bottom of a ravine. The situation was almost comical, and Ultra Magnus indulged in a slight chuckle.

"What's funny?" Cyclonus groused, still face down on the ground.

"This whole situation, really." Ultra Magnus shrugged. It was too dark to see anything but Cyclonus's silhouette and the red ring of light from his optics. Nonetheless Ultra Magnus pictured a very funny expression as the Decepticon sat up next to him. It would be a look of pure vexation.

"I don't see what's so funny about it." He grumbled, dusting himself off. "You offered me help and I tried to teach you a lesson, but it seems we both failed."

"I didn't offer you help on purpose I, pardon the expression, went on Autopilot." Ultra Magnus informed him. "But yes, we both failed spectacularly. The irony is pretty amusing."

"If you say so." Cyclonus studied Ultra Magnus in the dark. He had meant to prove a point both to this Autobot and himself. Autobots and Decepticons could not help one another. They could not fraternize. It went against everything they were fighting for. Cyclonus knew it was purely a difference in philosophy that lead to a war that spanned millions of years. Yet next to him sat an Autobot far too like himself. One built of tough, loyal stuff. Cyclonus could almost say he liked Ultra Magnus. Which is why he had sincerely hoped the fall would kill them both. A fitting warrior's end, without him ever having to face up to a strange feeling stirring inside him. Indeed, this situation was very ironic.

"It sounds like the battle is finishing up." Ultra Magnus commented. Cyclonus listened, and indeed it did. The sounds of battle were slowly abating, to be replaced by the sounds of ships taking off. "Looks like the 'cons lost." Magnus commented, knowing that no ships, Autobot or Decepticon, would leave in the event of and Decepticon victory. "Everyone's probably off to count casualties. We might be stuck here a while."

"Great." Cyclonus sighed. Even as second-in-command, after such a long battle his absence would take time to be discovered. "What should we do until then?"

"That is a good question." Ultra Magnus nodded. It seemed as if there was nothing they really could do. To continue to fight would be pointless and stupid. So what could he possibly do while sitting at the bottom of a ravine with a Decepticon? "Maybe we could get out of here? You have enough space to fly?"

"Even if I did, I'd just leave you here." Cyclonus said snidely.

"Right." Ultra Magnus got to his feet and stretched slightly. "Looks like we climb."

"The terracing of the ledge won't allow for that." Cyclonus said, pointing out the looming rocky over hangs.

"No, but if we walk a little distance up the ravine we may find a better place to climb up from." Ultra Magnus waved a hand in one direction.

"A sound plan." Cyclonus got up and began walking the opposite way Ultra Magnus had pointed.

"Hey, uh, I thought we should go the other way." Ultra Magnus said, as he caught up with Cyclonus.

"I know. That's why I am headed in this direction." Cyclonus kept walking at a brisk pace. "It is best if we go our separate ways."

"And risk getting lost and stranded without any back up? No way."

"I am NOT your back up." Cyclonus stopped and spun on his heel to face Ultra Magnus. "Let us get one thing straight, Autobot. I am not your friend. I am not your companion. I will not help you if you are in danger. We are of two different factions, and I for one refuse unnecessary fraternization with the enemy." Cyclonus was nearly shouting at this point. He had lost some of his characteristic calm.

"Good to know where I stand with you." Ultra Magnus nodded slowly. Cyclonus turned to leave. "But, I don't believe you wouldn't help me if I was in danger. You've already done it once, if you recall."

"That was different." Cyclonus said sharply. His faceplates growing hot. "You might have been useful to escape that situation… besides, I wanted to kill you myself."

"I get that, but if I am in danger of dying by someone else's hands would you help me out?" Ultra Magnus asked, walking a little closer.

"It depends who they were." Cyclonus turned to face Ultra Magnus. "If it were Galvatron, I would let him obliterate you."

"If it wasn't Galvatron?" Ultra Magnus pressed.

"Then I would let you live. Provided it represented no risk to my own life." Cyclonus tried not to look as defeated as he felt. He was being picked apart by this Autobot. It seemed like his enemy knew him better then his allies.

"Cyclonus, you really aren't like the other Decepticons." Ultra Magnus said. He now stood only a few feet away. "You have something noble in you. Why are you loyal to a faction that can't appreciate that?"

"You know nothing of the Decepticons and what they believe in." Cyclonus spat angrily. "We can be just as brave and loyal as the Autobots. You, Ultra Magnus, have the heart of a true warrior. Something the other weak Autobot's could never understand!" Cyclonus and Ultra Magnus stood for a long time starring at each other in the darkness, their outlines full in shape, but devoid of color. They broke the silence at the same time.

"Why don't you join the-"

"-Autobots" "-Decepticons."

Suddenly both warriors burst out in laughter, leaning into each other for support as they laughed in a hysterical way neither had ever done. When finally it subsided they were left in a partial embrace, alone, in the darkness.

"We're a mess, y'know that?" Ultra Magus said.

"We sure are." Cyclonus agreed.

"I think I'm in love with you." Ultra Magnus said, his face resting on his supposed enemies shoulder. Cyclonus could say nothing. He felt it too. The strange chemistry that had ignited between them like a fire. The way his spark now seemed to race in time with Ultra Magnus's. It was so unfair. Love was an emotion the Decepticons rarely felt, let alone expressed. Cyclonus could not even be sure it was love that made his internal mechanism burn. Ultra Magnus lifted his head from Cyclonus's shoulder and looked solemnly into the smoldering red of his optics.

"I would never join the Autobots." Cyclonus finally said to break the awkward silence that had fallen between them.

"And I'd go offline before I joined the Decepticons." Ultra Magnus agreed.

"I know. That's why we can not be together. It just isn't possible." Cyclonus began to pull away from Ultra Magnus, but a steady hand stopped him.

"In the long run, no, we can't." Ultra Magnus gave Cyclonus's shoulder a tight squeeze. "Maybe, though, just for now, we could forget who we are according to faction, and be together just this once."

"Just once." Cyclonus agreed sadly. He leaned in and took the Autobot's lips in a passionate kiss. There was no gentleness, nor finesse as their glossas slipped passed their lips and into the other's mouth. Ultra Magnus placed his hands on the sides of Cyclonus's helm and pulled him as close as was possible. Cyclonus wrapped his arms tightly around Ultra Magnus and their bodies ground together bringing both shocks of pleasure. Ultra Magnus felt his lower plating easily slid aside by Cyclonus's hands as foreign fingers entangled themselves deeply in the sensitive wiring beneath.

"Cyclonus!" Ultra Magnus gasped out, breaking their kiss for the first time. They both cycled air frantically through their quickly heating systems as electricity arced between the places their bodies did not touch. Ultra Manus fought back the urge to overload. He wanted this to last. His own hand fumbled out to find Cyclonus's lower plating already undone. He reached into the entangled wires searching for the one specific cable that would make a connection between them complete. He found it and Cyclonus tried to suppress a cry as his lower cable was touched and gently pulled from the surrounding wires. Cyclonus decided to do likewise and pulled out Ultra Magnus's connection cable.

"Ready?" Cyclonus questioned. Ultra Magnus answered by jamming Cyclonus's connection cable into his own port. He let out a cry as waves of powerful electric pulses swept over him. Cyclonus returned the favor. They both fell against each other, suddenly lost in pure ecstasy. It was unlike anything they ever felt before. In the chaos of sensation they found one another's mouths and locked once again in a fiery kiss. The electric charge between them built to a sizzling roar before at last they over loaded. They used each other for support as they slumped onto their knees. Both cycled air harshly in the after glow. It was the most amazing interface either had had.

Cyclonus was the first to move. He removed the cables that connected them gently and replaced his own lower casing. Ultra Magnus looked at Cyclonus a moment longer before attending to his own plating. A certain sadness swam in his optics. In those moments of connection he had felt so wonderfully complete, as if he had found his spark-mate. However now all he could look at was the insignia permanently branded onto Cyclonus. It was like a wall that kept them worlds apart, even when they were close enough to touch.

"Our allies will be here soon." Cyclonus said. "We should get out of here and split up as soon as possible. We don't want to be found together."

"You're absolutely right." Ultra Magnus sat for a moment cheerlessly. Cyclonus rose to his feet and offered a hand to Ultra Magnus. His hand was not taken. Ultra Magnus stood upon his own two feet, and looked into the eyes of his enemy; the only mech he had ever loved. "I'm going to go on my own, and when next we meet, we will be enemies."

"Nothing more, nothing less. I promise." Cyclonus understood. His spark pulsed lowly in his chest. They turned their backs and walked away.

* * *

Hope you enjoyed it. If you didn't, please tell me what I did wrong. I live to serve. If you liked this pairing spread the word. I want moar of it. Ohyes.


End file.
